This disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for generating and screening coating libraries, and more particularly, to systems and methods for the deposition of layers of materials onto a substrate to form a coating library.
Coatings are widely used in industry to enhance the functionality and add-on value of bulk materials. There are generally two types of functional coating materials: inorganic and organic coatings. Organic coatings are widely used in many industrial protective/decorative applications, such as automobile top clear coatings, paints, etc. Other types of organic coatings include, for example, protective and anticorrosive coatings, adhesive and release coatings, environmental barrier coatings, electric conductive/optic transparent coatings, scratch resistant hard coatings, etc. Discovery of an advanced coating formula promises huge value for a manufacturer.
The development of generic tools to accelerate the discovery process for various coating systems may be of even higher value, however, as the search for and optimization of advanced coatings is more of an art than a science. The power of theoretical guidance in the search for and optimization of advanced coatings is limited, largely because of the complexity of a typical coating system and the multiplicity of quality requirements that must be met. Typically, industrial coating formulations have to meet multiple functional requirements, and multiple compatible functional groups or blends are necessary to obtain a balanced formulation. In addition, the properties of a coating system depend not only on the formula/composition, but also on the processing conditions and the coating application method. For example, the degree of thickness uniformity and surface roughness, which depend on the processing and application method of a coating, are important in the quality and reproducibility of the coating. Further, different processing conditions, including exposure to ultraviolet (UV)/electron curing, varying temperature/pressure, and the sequence of application of each layer of multiple layer coatings, are highly important factors in determining the structure/composition of the final coating. Additionally, the structure/composition of the final coating impacts the functionality of the coating. Thus, because of the multitude of variables, most of the usable industrial coating systems developed to date have been the result of serendipitous trial-and-error experimental processes.
Therefore, there is a need for an approach that accelerates the rate at which functional coatings are generated and studied for various manufacturing applications. Thus, the present invention provides systems and methods for high throughput fabrication and analysis of an array of coated materials.
A system of one embodiment for making an array of coated materials that form a coating library includes a substrate having a surface with a plurality of predefined regions, where a plurality of materials are provided for coating the substrate. A delivery mechanism associated with the plurality of materials is positioned to deliver a continuously varying mixture of the plurality of materials onto the surface of the substrate.
A method of one embodiment for making an array of coated materials that form a coating library includes delivering a continuously varying mixture of a plurality of materials onto the surface of a substrate having a plurality of predefined regions to form a predefined coating on each of the regions.